The more time I spend with young people growing up on farms and the more I learn about their plans for their futures, the more enthusiastic I am to use the tools I understand, pixels and light, to carry their stories and experiences to a broader audience. — R. J. Kern

R. J. Kern (b. 1978) is an American artist whose work investigates ideas of home, ancestry, and a sense of place. His portraits focus on intimate, interdependent relationships of people, animals, and landscape as a means of exploring how ancestry shapes identity and how myth intertwines with personal history. His camera has led him from an inquiry into his lineage in the farming communities of Scandinavia and Ireland to the examination of similar communities near his home in Minnesota. Increasingly, his attention has been captured by the next generation of young people, who may or may not be the stewards of rural communities and economies in the future.

Inspired by master landscape painters of the 19th-century, Kern embraces the heightened expressivity of natural and artificial lighting techniques. To draw sharper connections between traditional and modern farming routines, he adopts both historical and current photographic processes. While illuminating the ephemeral beauty of youth, Kern probes the current realities of agrarian practices, aspiring to enhance awareness and interest in the changing face of American pastoral life. 

His work has been exhibited in a number of notable exhibitions, including the Museum of Modern Art (Tbilisi, Georgia), the National Portrait Gallery (London, UK), the Yixian International Photography Festival (Anhui, China), and solo exhibitions at the Griffin Museum of Photography (Boston, MA) and the Plains Art Museum (Fargo, ND). Kern’s work and books have been exhibited at art fairs such as Paris Photo and Classic Photographs LA, as well as at galleries nationwide, most recently Klompching Gallery in Brooklyn, Burnet Fine Art & Advisory in Minneapolis, and Afterimage Gallery in Dallas.

Accolades include PDN’s 30 2018, Critical Mass Top 50 in 2018 and 2021, CENTER 2017 Choice Award Winner (Curator’s Choice, First Place), the 2017 Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize (Finalist), and three Artist Initiative Grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board (2016, 2018, 2020). He was the Commemorative Artist for the 2019 Minnesota State Fair.

Kern's work has been presented in a number of publications, including a feature in National Geographic (November 2017). Kern published his first monograph with Kehrer Verlag titled, The Sheep and the Goats, awarded one of  "The Most Beautiful German Books 2018” by Stiftung Buchkunst and awarded Bronze by the prestigious Deutscher Fotobuchpreis 2018-19. His second monograph, The Unchosen Ones: Portraits of an American Pastoral, (MW Editions, 2021) is supported by a multi-year traveling exhibition by ExhibitsUSA launching in 2022.

Selected collections holding his work include: Center for Creative Photography (Tuscon, AZ), Center for Photography at Woodstock (Woodstock, NY), Fidelity Corporate Art Collection (Boston, MA), Griffin Museum of Photography (Winchester, MA), Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art (Tarpon Springs, FL), General Mills Corporate Collection (Minneapolis, MN), Minneapolis Institute of Art (Minneapolis, MN), Plains Art Museum (Fargo, ND), Masur Museum of Art ( Monroe, LA), Minnesota Historical Society (St. Paul, MN), Museum of Fine Arts (Houston, TX), and Museum of Fine Arts (St. Petersburg, FL).

He is represented by Burnet Fine Art & Advisory and Olson-Larsen Galleries.

ARTIST PROSPECTUS | BIO | CV | Wikipedia

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2021

Concordia College, Moorhead, MN

2020

Thomas-Reuters Gallery, Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport

Watermark Art Center, Bemidji, MN

2019

Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND

Burnet Fine Art & Advisory, Wayzata, MN

2018  

Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, MA

Burnet Fine Art & Advisory, Wayzata, MN

Klompching Gallery, Brooklyn, NY

2017  

Yixian International Photography Festival, Anhui, China

Gallery 360, Minneapolis, MN

Central Lakes College, Brainerd, MN

The Phipps Center for the Arts, Hudson Hospital & Clinic Healing Arts, Hudson, WI

2015    

Ecce Gallery, Fargo, ND

Kaddatz Gallery, Fergus Falls, MN

2014    

Sanford Health Roger Maris Cancer Center, Fargo, ND

AWARDS AND GRANTS

2021

Critical Mass “Top 50”, Photolucida, Portland, OR

Minnesota State Arts Board, Creative Support for Individuals Grant, St. Paul, MN

International Photography Awards, Portrait / Landscape Category, First Place

Communication Arts Photography Annual 62, Award of Excellence

American Photography 37, Selected Winner

The Royal Photographic Society’s International Photography Exhibition 163, Shortlisted

Helsinki Photo Festival, Open Call Winner

The Independent Photographer Portrait Award, Editors’ Pick

Life Framer: Youthhood, Editors’ Pick

Life, A Smith Gallery, Juror Alyssa Coppelman, Director’s Honorable Mention

Kolga Tbilisi Photo Award 2021, Shortlisted

International Photography Awards, One Shot - Our Times: Isolation, Honorable Mention

110th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror Carla Rodriguez, Honorable Mention

2020

Minnesota State Arts Board, Artist Initiative Grant, St. Paul, MN

American Photography 36, Selected Winner

Springboard for the Arts, Coronavirus Emergency Relief Fund, Recipient

109th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror Buck Holzemer, Honorable Mention

2019

Commemorative Artist, 2019 Minnesota State Fair

Critical Mass “Top 200” Finalist, Photolucida, Portland, OR

McKnight Foundation Scholarship, Americans for the Arts Annual Convention, Minneapolis, MN

San Francisco Bay International Photography Competition and Exhibition, ACCI Gallery, Jurors Elizabeth Avedon, Julie Grahame, Ann M. Jastrab, and David Garnick, First Place

56th Annual Juried Competition Exhibition, Masur Museum of Art, Juror Catherine Futter, Honorable Mention

Brand 47 Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Juror Alma Ruiz, Brand Library and Art Center, Brand Associates Award

6th Open Call, Rhode Island Center for Photographic Arts, Juror Aline Smithson, Second Place

Red, A Smith Gallery, Juror Fran Forman, Director’s Honorable Mention

2018  

Critical Mass “Top 50”, Photolucida, Portland, OR

Minnesota State Arts Board, Artist Initiative Grant, St. Paul, MN

PDN’s 30: New and Emerging Photographers to Watch

German Photobook Prize, Bronze

"The Most Beautiful German Books 2018,” by Stiftung Buchkunst

"Great State of Minnesota Award" by Minnesota Citizens for the Arts

"First Glance Award," Minnesota State Fair Foundation

Communication Arts Photography Annual 59, Award of Excellence

2017  

CENTER Choice Award Winner, Curator’s Choice, Juror Corey Keller, First Place  

Review Santa Fe 100, CENTER, Santa Fe, NM

Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize, National Portrait Gallery, London, UK, Finalist

2017 International Juried Exhibition, Center for Photographic Art, Juror Philip Brookman, Second Place

The Royal Photographic Society’s International Photography Exhibition 160, Silver Award

Renaissance Photography Prize 2017, Finalist

All About Photo Awards 2017: Mind’s Eye, Winner and participant in Juror’s Merit Gallery

International Contemporary Art Competition 2017, Open Art Miami, Finalist

106th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror Areca Roe, Honorable Mention

Arts in Harmony International Juried Art Show, Blaine, MN, First Place Photography

2016   

Minnesota State Arts Board, Artist Initiative Grant, St. Paul, MN

Critical Mass Finalist "Top 200", Photolucida, Portland, OR

ONWARD Compé '16, Project Basho Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, Finalist

Emerald Art Center, Springfield, OR, Best in Show

Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cotuit, MA, Juror Award

Cultural Center of Cape Cod, MA, Second Place, Overall

Savage Arts Council 10th Annual Juried Art Competition & Show, Honorable Mention

2015   

Review Santa Fe 100, CENTER, Santa Fe, NM

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2021

Portraits without Borders, Fotogalerie Friedrichshain, Berlin, Germany

What We Know: Atlanta Celebrates Photography Festival — Ones To Watch, Curator: Mary Stanley, MINT Gallery, Atlanta, GA

High Visibility: On Location in Rural America and Indian Country, Curator: Matthew Fluharty, Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND

Time Capsule, Juror: Shamim M. Momin, Photographic Center Northwest, Seattle, WA 

Photography: A Sense of Place, Juror: Jacqui Palumbo, Site: Brooklyn Gallery, Brooklyn, NY

Head On Photo Festival, Sydney, Australia

Helsinki Photo Festival, Helsinki, Finland

Introducing, Olsen Olson-Larsen Galleries, Des Moines, IA

Life, Juror: Alyssa Coppelman, A Smith Gallery, Johnson City, TX, Director’s Honorable Mention

Houston Center of Photography Print Auction 2021 Exhibition, Houston Center of Photography, Houston, TX

Reimagining Hope, Juror: Samantha Johnston, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Month of Photography Denver Festival, Denver, CO

On the Autobiographical Impulse, The 62nd Midwestern Invitational Exhibition, Rourke Art Museum, ​Moorhead, MN

Focus Friday, Curator: Christine Renc-Carter, Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Tarpon Springs, FL

110th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror Carla Rodriguez, St. Paul, MN, Honorable Mention

2020

Foot in the Door 5: The Virtual Exhibition, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN

Bird, Nest, Nature, Jurors: Jeffrey De Blois (Assistant Curator, ICA Boston) and Rebecca Lowery (Assistant Curator, MOCA Los Angeles), Bedford Gallery, Walnut Creek, CA

The Animal Show, Olson-Larsen Galleries, West Des Moines, IA

Light Sensitive, Jurors: Brett Abbott (Director of Collections and Exhibitions, Amon Carter Museum of American Art), Art Intersection Gallery, Gilbert, AZ

Fresh: A Summer Selection, Burnet Fine Art & Advisory, Wayzata, MN

108th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror: Buck Holzemer, St Paul, MN, Honorable Mention

PhotoSpiva 2020, Juror: April M. Watson (Curator of Photography, Nelson Atkins Museum of Art), Spiva Center for the Arts, Joplin, MO

Brand 48 Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Juror: Dan McCleary, Brand Library and Art Center, Glendale, CA

Spring Affair, Curator: Ruben Natal-San Miguel, Center for Photography at Woodstock, Woodstock, NY

In One’s Own Skin, The 61st Midwestern Invitational Exhibition, Rourke Art Museum, Moorhead, MN

Love, Minnesota, Kristi Abbott Gallery, Minneapolis, MN

2019

A Sampling of Contemporary Portraiture, Curator: Ben Breard, Afterimage Gallery, Dallas, TX

56th Annual Juried Competition Exhibition, Juror: Catherine Futter (Director of Curatorial Affairs, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art), Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA, Honorable Mention

2019 International Juried Exhibition, Juror: Paula Tongarelli, Center for Photographic Art, Carmel, CA

Red, Juror: Fran Forman, A Smith Gallery, Johnson City, TX, Director’s Honorable Mention

San Francisco Bay International Photography Competition Exhibition, Jurors: Elizabeth Avedon, Julie Grahame, Ann Jastrab, and David Garnick, ACCI Gallery, Berkeley, CA, First Place

Brand 47 Annual National Juried Exhibition of Works on Paper, Juror: Alma Ruiz, Brand Library and Art Center, Glendale, CA, Brand Associates Award

107th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror Peter Wong, St Paul, MN

States of Becoming, Ninth Annual International Juried Exhibition, Juror: Carrie Dedon (Assistant Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art, Seattle Art Museum), Gallery 110, Seattle, WA

Photowork 2019: 32nd Annual National Juried Photography Exhibition, Juror: James A. Ganz (Senior Curator of Photography, J. Paul Getty Museum), Barrett Art Center, Poughkeepsie, NY

6th Open Call, Juror: Aline Smithson, Rhode Island Center for Photographic Arts, Providence, RI, Second Place

Zeitgeist, The 60th Midwestern Invitational Exhibition, Rourke Art Museum, Moorhead, MN

Art & Artists Among Us, The Public Arts Commission Gallery, Alerus Center, Grand Forks, ND

Triangulate, Curators: Nathan Beard, Eivind Natvig, and Kirk Ke Wang, Lofoten International Photo Festival, Kabelvåg and Reine, Norway and China (Fall 2019)

Let’s Go 2, Burnet Fine Art & Advisory, Wayzata, MN

Houston Center of Photography Print Auction 2019 Exhibition, Houston Center of Photography, Houston, TX

Arts North, Juror: Curt Pederson, The American Swedish Institute, Minneapolis, MN

2018

Yixian International Photography Festival, Curator: Guo Jing, Anhui, China

Rokko Photographic Garden, Curator: Takeki Sugiyama, Kobe, Japan

Triangulate, Curators: Nathan Beard, Eivind Natvig, and Kirk Ke Wang. Dunedin Fine Art Center, Dunedin, FL (traveling)

First Annual Photobook Juried Exhibition, Jurors: Mary Virginia Swanson, Alice Whiteside, and Dave Wofford, Horse & Buggy Press and Friends, Durham, NC

PDN’S 30 2018: Our Choice of New and Emerging Photographers to Watch, container exhibition, Photoville, Brooklyn, NY

107th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror: Mark Jensen, St Paul, MN. "First Glance Award" and "Minnesota Citizens for the Arts' Great State of Minnesota Award"

Love, Helsinki Photo Festival at Kalasatamanpuisto, Jurors: Iben Bach Elmstrøm, Rafael Rybczynski, Astrid Gjersøe Skåtterød, Charlie Fjätström, and Tor Ulstein. Helsinki, Finland

Camelot, The 59th Midwestern Invitational Exhibition, Rourke Art Museum, Moorhead, MN

Allegany National Photographic Exhibition, Jurors: Karen Irvine, Saville and Schwab Galleries, Cumberland, MD

31st Annual McNeese National Works on Paper Exhibition, Jurors: Benjamin Hickey, McNeese State University, Lake Charles, LA 

Classic Photographs Los Angeles Art Fair, Bergamot Arts Center, Klompching Gallery Booth, Santa Monica, CA

2017  

Zenith: CENTER's 2017 International Photographic Award Winners, Juror: Corey Keller (Curator of Photography, SF Museum of Modern Art), Marion Center for Photographic Arts, Santa Fe, NM. First Place

2017 International Juried Exhibition, Juror: Philip Brookman (Consulting Curator, National Galley of Art, Washington, DC), Center for Photographic Art, Carmel, CA. Second Place

The Royal Photographic Society’s International Photography Exhibition 160, Jurors: Karin Bareman, Zelda Cheatle, Sian Davey, Ingrid Pollard, and Abbie Trayler-Smith. PHOTOBLOCK, Old Truman Brewery, London, England. Silver Medal

Renaissance Photography Prize 2017, Jurors: Clare Grafik, Dewi Lewis, Fiona Rogers, Fiona Shields, Gem Fletcher, Marloes Krijnen, Melissa DeWitt, and Simon Roberts, Getty Images Gallery, London, England. Finalist

Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2017, Jurors: Nicholas Cullinan, David Campany, Sabina Jaskot-Gill, Fiona Shields, Gillian Wearing, National Portrait Gallery, London, England. Finalist

The FENCE: A Public Photography Exhibition Series, juried by panel of 68, United Photo Industries in Boston, MA; Brooklyn, NY;  Atlanta, GA; Houston, TX; Santa Fe, NM; Durham, NC; Denver, CO

Americana, Juror: Darren Ching, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO

Wild Beasts, Sheep & Crocodiles, Kolga Tbilisi Photo 2017, Curator: Tina Schelhorn, Museum of Modern Art, Tbilisi, Georgia

106th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror: Areca Roe, St Paul, MN. Honorable Mention Photography

Roots and Wings, Juror: Eric William Carroll, Silverwood Park Gallery, St. Anthony, MN

Revolution, The 58th Midwestern Invitational Exhibition, The Rourke Art Museum, Moorhead, MN

The Art of Giving, Juror: Jason Restamayer, North Dakota Museum of Art, Grand Forks, ND

Mind’s Eye, Daylighted digital exhibition as part of All About Photo Awards 2017, Jurors: Beatrice Chassepot, Julien Chatelin, James Dooley, Susan Dooley, Sandrine Hermand-Grisel, Ann Jastrab, Aline Smithson, Judy Walgren, and Sabine Weiss. Phoenix Hotel, San Francisco, CA

Arts North, Juror: Curt Pederson, The American Swedish Institute, Minneapolis, MN

Arts in Harmony International Juried Art Show, Juror: Curt Pederson, Elk River Area Arts Alliance, Blaine, MN. First Place Photography

2016  

The FENCE: A Public Photography Exhibition Series juried by panel of 44, United Photo Industries in Boston, MA; Brooklyn, NY;  Atlanta, GA; Houston, TX; Santa Fe, NM

Open Door Twelve, Juror: Andrea Carlson, Rosalux Gallery, Minneapolis, MN

2016 International Juried Exhibition, Juror: Linde B. Lehtinen, PhD, Center for Photographic Art, Carmel, CA

PhotoMidwest 2016 Juried Exhibition, Juror: Larry Fink, The Overture Center for the Arts, Madison, WI

National Juried Photography Competition and Exhibition, Jurors: Susie Morrill, David Turner, and Ron Jude, Emerald Art Center, Springfield, OR

Spirit: Made Here, juried by 22 artists and arts professionals, Hennepin Theater Trust, Minneapolis, MN

A Point of View: Contemporary Photography, Juror: Mitra Abbaspour, Site: Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY

Paramount Juried Statewide Art Exhibition, Juror: Rachel Daly, Paramount Center for the Arts, St. Cloud, MN

Apertures, Juror Amy Neill, Cultural Center of Cape Cod, South Yarmouth, MA. Second Place

Fun House: Art of the Surreal, Fantastic and Bizarre, Juror: Eve Biddle, Barrett Art Center, Poughkeepsie, NY

Tripping the Light Fantastic: Excellence in Photography, Juror: Rowland Scherman, Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cotuit, MA

22nd Juried Show via Instagram, Jurors: Paula Tognarelli and Iaritza Menjivar, Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, MA

ONWARD Compé '16, Juror: Richard Renaldi, Project Basho Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Smörgåsbord, The New Bohemian Gallery at the Franklin Arts Center, Brainerd, MN

Menagerie: Animals in Art, Juror: Robert Bowman, Minnetonka Center for the Arts, Wayzata, MN

Gallery 360, selected works, Minneapolis, MN

Savage Arts Council 10th Annual Juried Art Competition & Show, Juror: Cynthia Kath, Karen Gustafson, and Dan Noyes, Savage, MN

2015    

Gallery 360, selected works, Minneapolis, MN

Newvember, Ecce Gallery, Fargo, ND

Photo Op, Juror Robert Bowman, Minnetonka Center for the Arts, Wayzata, MN

The Art of Giving Group Show, Altru Medical Center, Grand Forks, ND

104th Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition, Juror: Steve Ozone, St Paul, MN

2014

Newvember, Ecce Gallery in Fargo, ND

GUEST LECTURES, ARTIST TALKS, AND WORKSHOPS

2021

Artist Talk and Workshop, Concordia College, Moorhead, MN

6-Feet Apart Photographer’s Presentation (virtual)

Artist Talk, Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art (virtual)

Guest Speaker, “Editing the Visual Narrative Workshop” with Sarah Leen and Bill Marr (virtual)

2020

Artist Talk, Watermark Art Center, Bemidji, MN (virtual)

Artist Talk and Workshop, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND

Artist Talk, Olson-Larsen Galleries, West Des Moines, IA (Virtual)

2019

Artist Talk and Workshop, Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND

Artist Talk, Burnet Fine Art and Advisory, Wayzata, MN

Artist Talk, Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN

2018

Panelist, Minnesota State Arts Board Arts Access Grant, St. Paul, MN

Artist Talk, Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, MA

Artist Talk, Emerson College, Boston, MA

Artist Talk, Burnet Fine Art and Advisory, Wayzata, MN

Artist Talk, Hennepin County Historical Society, Minneapolis, MN

Artist Talk, Scott County Historical Society, Minneapolis, MN

Artist Talk, PhaseOne Standout Event, Miami, FL

2017

Artist Talk, CENTER, Santa Fe, NM

Artist Talk, Central Lakes College, Brainerd, MN

Substitute Art Teacher, The Breck School, Golden Valley, MN

2016

Panelist, Minnesota State Arts Board Artist Initiative Grant, St. Paul, MN

Guest Lecturer, Valor High School, Littleton, CO

Portfolio Reviewer, Art Institutes International MN, Minneapolis, MN

COLLECTIONS

Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tuscon, AZ

Center for Photography at Woodstock, Woodstock, NY

Fidelity Corporate Art Collection, Boston, MA

General Mills Corporate Art Collection, Minneapolis, MN

Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, MA

Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Tarpon Springs, FL

Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA

Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN

Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul, MN

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX

Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL

Plains Art Museum, Fargo, ND

University of Minnesota Library, Francis V. Gorman Rare Art Book Collection

EDUCATION

2005    MA, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO

2000    BA, Colgate University, Hamilton, NY